When I was working as a civil servant, I was found out to be a muscle-brained knight by the princess knight and got sent to the front lines - Episode 145

Episode 145

Jez Norman’s mornings start early. Even after arriving at the Royal Academy, he’s maintained his daily routine from before: a morning run and martial arts practice. He wakes up around 5 a.m., begins training at 5:30, and continues for about an hour. Afterward, he takes a shower, eats breakfast, and heads to school. Since his after-school hours are often busy, the only time he truly has for himself is in the morning. He maintains an incredibly disciplined lifestyle, retiring to bed around 10 p.m., a regimen that hardly seems like that of an average student.

Two months have passed since the start of academy life, and Jez has established a steady rhythm. Joining him in his morning training are several students from the northern regions, including Linnea Haugen, Ida Niemi, and Ole Halvorsen. Linnea, in particular, had been accompanying Jez in his morning practice since their days in Foresval, the northern capital city. She continued to do so even at the Royal Academy.

Jez had told Linnea she didn’t need to stick to this routine if she didn’t want to, but for some reason, she found joy in helping him out. She would offer him towels and prepare drinks for him, almost like she was playing the role of a maid. Jez often reminded her not to trouble herself, but she was resolute—this was part of her personal code of service, something she took pride in as a dedicated attendant.

As for the others, Ida and Ole had started joining in at some point. They would compete with him in short sprints during their runs, and their martial arts practice had evolved into regular sparring matches. Ida, as the daughter of the 2nd Legion’s Legion Commander, had a solid foundation in combat skills. Ole showed great potential as a scholarship student. This group of talented individuals made the training sessions intense, which Jez appreciated.

One morning, after they had finished their training and were cooling down, Jez noticed Linnea glancing at him frequently. 

“…Linnea?” 

Jez asked, sensing something unusual in her behavior. Ida grinned knowingly at the interaction, while Ole looked at her in mild exasperation. Jez was puzzled and glanced between them, wondering what was going on.

“Um, Jez…? It seems like you’ve been getting along quite well with Miss Saylor recently, haven’t you?”

Lately, at school, Jez had been spending a lot of time with Seraphina, Victor, Saylor, and Stonewell. Now that Linnea mentioned it, he realized that Saylor had indeed been speaking to him more frequently than before. But to him, it felt like the usual level of camaraderie between classmates.

Just as Jez encouraged Linnea and the others not to stick exclusively to their northern peers, he made an effort not to limit his own interactions to the northerners either. After all, it was essential to forge connections across regions for the future. However, he still maintained his ties to his northern roots by training with them in the mornings and organizing gatherings for the northern students on weekends. When these gatherings took place, they often used the Norman family’s secondary residence in the royal capital. Although Jez’s adoptive father was mostly stationed on the northern front lines and rarely visited the capital, and his adoptive mother was busy in Foresval with their young twins, the residence was still utilized by the Norman family’s liaison and military personnel stationed in the capital.

For Jez, casually talking to Saylor and the others during lectures or after school didn’t feel out of the ordinary. But it seemed that Linnea found it noteworthy. Jez was aware that Linnea admired him, but he couldn’t help feeling like it was more akin to a child growing attached to a neighbor. He wasn’t entirely sure how to handle it.

As for Saylor, she didn’t seem to be approaching him out of any romantic interest either. Jez felt a bit out of sync—his outward appearance didn’t quite match his inner maturity, resulting in a kind of imbalance. To him, interacting with his classmates felt more like a teacher watching over his students rather than peers engaging with one another.

With these thoughts, their peaceful morning continued. However, as they were about to head back to the dormitory, they noticed another figure staggering along the same path.

“…Alchemis?” 

“Hm? Oh, Norman-kun.” 

It was unusual to see Victor walking outside the dorm at this time of the morning—actually, it was the first time Jez had seen him like this, and he looked quite unsteady.

Curious, Jez asked what had happened. Victor explained that he had already been assigned a personal laboratory at the academy and had holed himself up there last night, working on some experiment. Things had been going well, and in his excitement, he ended up pulling an all-nighter. He was experimenting non-stop until he realized it was already this late.

Victor, in turn, looked at Jez and his three companions with interest. As Jez casually talked about their morning training routine, he was surprised to see how intently Victor listened. Jez had always assumed Victor, being such an indoor person, wouldn’t be interested in this sort of conversation. Yet, his unexpected enthusiasm caught Jez off guard.

Seeing Victor’s interest, Jez asked almost offhandedly, 

“Alchemis, do you want to join us for training sometime?”

It was through this exchange that Jez would come to realize: a healthy mind does not necessarily reside in a healthy body.